Concomitant Procedures in Robotic Mitral Valve Surgery.

The robotic platform may provide advantages over sternotomy including improved visualization and greater dexterity. With emerging evidence increasingly supporting the importance of concomitantly addressing tricuspid regurgitation and atrial fibrillation, robotic surgeons should be encouraged to perform appropriate concomitant procedures where indicated.

Mechanisms of repair failure after mitral valve repair using chordal replacement.

Background: Mechanisms of repair failure after mitral valve repair (MVr) using chordal replacement and annuloplasty for degenerative mitral regurgitation were analyzed.

Methods: All mitral valve reoperations after isolated MVr using solely chordal replacement and annuloplasty for degenerative mitral regurgitation at the German Heart Center Munich were reviewed. This retrospective observational study aims to analyze mechanisms of repair failure leading to reoperations.

Redo totally endoscopic, robotic-assisted correction of previously failed approximation of papillary muscles.

We present the case of a failed papillary muscle approximation successfully treated using a totally endoscopic, robotic-assisted approach.

Association between preoperative right heart catheterization parameters and outcomes in patients undergoing isolated coronary artery bypass grafting.

Right ventricular catheterization may capture information that can help define prognosis before coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). In this study, we evaluate the association between preoperative right heart catheterization parameters and outcomes of patients undergoing isolated CABG. All patients undergoing isolated CABG at our institution from 2013 to 2021 who also underwent preoperative right heart catheterization <14 days prior to isolated CABG were retrospectively queried.

Developing Proficiency in Robotic Cardiac Surgery.

Background: The purpose of this review is to provide recommendations for cardiac surgeons interested in adopting a robotic platform into their programs.

Methods: The recommendations are based on the experience of the authors and cover a diverse array of cardiac surgical procedures that are currently performed with robotic assistance. The focus, as with any innovative surgical approach, is to ensure patient safety, maximize quality and efficacy, and set realistic expectations about what is required to achieve proficiency in robotic cardiac surgery.

Bleeding is associated with severely impaired outcomes in surgery for acute type a aortic dissection.

. Surgery for acute type A aortic dissection confers a risk for significant bleeding. We analyzed the impact of massive bleeding on complications after surgery for acute type A aortic dissection.

Mechanical versus biological mitral valve replacement: Insights from propensity score matching on survival and reoperation rates.

Objectives: Patients with symptomatic mitral valve disease unsuitable for repair can be sufficiently treated with surgical mitral valve replacement. The decision between biological and mechanical mitral valve replacement can be difficult, especially due to the question of the lesser of 2 evils: anticoagulation versus reoperation.

Methods: This single-center, retrospective study included all patients undergoing mitral valve replacement between 2001 and 2020.

Gender and Sex Differences in the Management, Intervention, and Outcomes of Patients With Severe Primary Mitral Regurgitation.

Background: Gender- and sex-based disparities in mitral valve disease exist; however the factors associated with these differences are unknown. Identifying these differences is essential in devising mitigating strategies. We evaluated gender and sex differences among patients with severe primary mitral regurgitation (MR) across treatment phases.

Functional Mitral Valve Regurgitation: Mitral Valve Repair or Replacement? Our "Road Map" for the Appropriate Strategy.

The optimal surgical approach for the treatment of functional mitral regurgitation (FMR) remains controversial. Current guidelines suggest that the surgical approach has to be tailored to the individual patient. The aim of the present study was to clarify further aspects of this tailored treatment.

Transcatheter heart valve explant with infective endocarditis-associated prosthesis failure and outcomes: the EXPLANT-TAVR international registry.

Background And Aims: Surgical explantation of transcatheter heart valves (THVs) is rapidly increasing, but there are limited data on patients with THV-associated infective endocarditis (IE). This study aims to assess the outcomes of patients undergoing THV explant for IE.

Methods: All patients who underwent THV explant between 2011 and 2022 from 44 sites in the EXPLANT-TAVR registry were identified.

The high-risk features among patients undergoing mitral valve operation for ischemic mitral regurgitation: The 3-strike score.

Objective: Ischemic mitral regurgitation is prevalent and associated with high surgical risk. With the less-invasive option of transcatheter edge-to-edge repair, the optimal patient selection for mitral valve operation for ischemic mitral regurgitation remains unclear. We sought to identify high-risk features in this group to guide patient selection.

Living in disadvantaged neighborhoods linked to less intervention for severe aortic stenosis.

To investigate the association between area deprivation index (ADI) and aortic valve replacement (AVR) in patients with severe aortic stenosis (AS). Patients aged 40-95 years with severe AS confirmed by echocardiography were included. The 9-digit zip code of patient residence address was used to identify the ADI ranking, based on which patients were divided into 5 groups (with Group E being most deprived).

Implementing Formal Mitral Heart Team Improves Multidisciplinary Evaluation Rate and Survival of Patients With Severe Primary Mitral Regurgitation.

Background: Multidisciplinary heart team (HT) evaluation is recommended for patients with severe primary mitral regurgitation to optimize treatment decisions. However, its impact on patient outcomes remains unknown. We evaluated the impact of implementing mitral HT on patient survival.

Fracturing and tectonic stress drive ultrarapid magma flow into dikes.

Many examples of exposed giant dike swarms can be found where lateral magma flow has exceeded hundreds of kilometers. We show that massive magma flow into dikes can be established with only modest overpressure in a magma body if a large enough pathway opens at its boundary and gradual buildup of high tensile stress has occurred along the dike pathway prior to the onset of diking. This explains rapid initial magma flow rates, modeled up to about 7400 cubic meters per second into a dike ~15-kilometers long, which propagated under the town of Grindavík, Southwest Iceland, in November 2023.

Extremely Long-Term Follow-Up of Dr William Glenn's Original Patient Cohort With Superior Cavopulmonary Anastomosis (1958-1990).

Background: Historically, Dr William Glenn performed the first classic superior cavopulmonary anastomosis in a seven-year-old child at Yale in 1958. By 1990, this operation was performed consecutively in over 90 patients. With over 60 years of follow-up, this is the longest survival record of early Glenn patients from the first 30 years.

Assessment of online information on robotic cardiac and thoracic surgery.

Online health resources are important for patients seeking perioperative information on robotic cardiac and thoracic surgery. The value of the resources depends on their readability, accuracy, content, quality, and suitability for patient use. We systematically assess current online health information on robotic cardiac and thoracic surgery.

Outcomes of patients with advanced liver disease undergoing cardiac surgery.

Objective: Liver disease (LD) is considered a risk factor for inferior outcomes in general and cardiac surgery, yet current cardiac surgery risk estimators exclude LD, and literature on the topic remains scant. We sought to evaluate whether the presence of advanced LD is associated with inferior outcomes following cardiac surgery.

Methods: This single-center, retrospective, observational study included 285 patients diagnosed with LD who underwent cardiac surgery in 2010 to 2020.